Delta One (business class) on an A330 is a new option to London (Image: Delta)

In international route developments, Hong Kong Airlines details its plans for San Francisco service; Delta will increase London Heathrow capacity next year with bigger aircraft; Virgin Atlantic will put 747s onto two U.S. routes; Lufthansa moves into Airberlin markets; Norwegian adds an ultra-long haul low-fare route; Hawaiian switches code-share allegiance to Japan Airlines; and American and United alter their Cuba services.

Delta is making some changes to its London Heathrow service next year, giving it a lot more capacity from key hubs. The company said that effective March 24, it will change equipment on its LHR routes out of New York JFK, Atlanta and Detroit from the current 208-passenger 767-300s to 293-seat Airbus A330s. Delta One flat-bed seats in the A330s have that herringbone layout with aisle access for all. Delta will also slightly alter its JFK joint venture schedule with Virgin Atlantic; the current schedule of five Virgin and three Delta flights a day will change to six Virgin and two Delta departures.

While Delta recently publicized some new Europe routes it is adding in 2018, it did not publicize some that it is dropping. That includes seasonal summer service from New York JFK to Moscow Sheremetyevo and to Stockholm Arlanda, and from Philadelphia to Paris CDG.

Hong Kong Airlines, partly owned by China’s Hainan Airlines, will begin service between Hong Kong and Los Angeles in mid-December. A few weeks ago, we reported that the airline also has its eye on other U.S. gateways, and it has just revealed it plans for Hong Kong-San Francisco service. The carrier plans to start flying HKG-SFO on March 25 with four flights a week, increasing to daily frequencies by August 18, according to Routesonline.com. Both LAX and San Francisco flights will use A350-900s with 33 fully-reclining business class seats, 108 in “Economy Comfort” class, and 193 in regular economy. Will a new entrant be able to compete in a crowded SFO market against Cathay Pacific’s three daily flights to Hong Kong, plus service from United and Singapore? We’ll see…

Meanwhile, Virgin Atlantic also has some good news for fans of the fast-disappearing Boeing 747. On March 26, Virgin will put a 747-400 onto its daily Manchester-Atlanta service twice a week, increasing to three a week May 26. And on May 22, it will start using a 747-400 on four of its seven weekly JFK-Manchester flights. The other flights on both routes use A330s.

Lufthansa will fly A330 on two U.S. routes–but not to its hubs. (Image: Lufthansa)

Germany’s bankrupt Airberlin keeps limping along as it negotiates the sale of its assets to competitors, but that hasn’t stopped Lufthansa from targeting a couple of Airberlin routes. Lufthansa just announced a pair of new U.S. routes starting this fall – neither one to its hubs at Frankfurt or Munich. On November 7 Lufthansa will kick off New York JFK-Berlin service five days a week with an A330-300 (its first Berlin wide-body service in 16 years), followed on November 8 by Miami-Dusseldorf A330-300 flights three days a week. Next summer, both routes will be transferred to Lufthansa’s Eurowings subsidiary. (Meanwhile, the Oneworld alliance has suspended mileage earning and spending privileges on Airberlin flights for members of other Oneworld airline frequent flyer programs.)

What is the world’s longest route operated by a low-cost airline? As of this week, it’s London Gatwick-Singapore, just launched by Norwegian – its first route to Asia. The carrier is using a 787-9 to fly the 6,764-mile route (12 hours 45 minutes) four times a week, with one-way base fares starting as low as 150 pounds ($201) (plus lots of fees, of course). Norwegian flies to London Gatwick from several U.S. cities – most recently adding Denver-Gatwick and Seattle-Gatwick flights.

Hawaiian Airlines and Japan Airlines have announced a new code-share partnership that starts March 25, subject to government approval. “The two carriers also intend to establish a joint venture designed to provide even more choices, convenience and enhancements to the traveling public to/from Japan and beyond to multiple Asian markets,” Hawaiian said. Specific code-shared flights and routes haven’t yet been announced, but Hawaiian said its passengers will have “full access to Japan’s domestic network,” including Nagoya, Fukuoka, Sendai and Aomori. The pact also includes reciprocal mileage earning and spending on code-shared flights, as well as mutual airport lounge access. Hawaiian is moving into JAL’s Terminal 2 at Tokyo Narita to facilitate easy connections. The deal also means the end of Hawaiian’s code-sharing partnership with ANA.

U.S. carriers continue to adjust their Cuba services as they get a better handle on consumer demand for flights to the island nation. American Airlines plans to terminate its daily Miami-Cienfuegos E175 flights on January 7, and United has applied for government approval to increase its service from Houston Bush Intercontinental to Havana from weekly Saturday-only flights to daily frequencies. It didn’t specify a start date for the increase.

American Airlines’ new Los Angeles-Beijing route authority is in trouble.(Photo: Derwiki – Pixabay)

In international route developments, American’s recently-awarded route authority from Los Angeles to Beijing has hit a big snag, and American’s code goes onto a LAX-Paris flight; Qantas and American will try again for antitrust immunity; Virgin Atlantic schedules the deployment of A330s equipped with a new Upper Class; United changes planes on one of its San Francisco-London flights; Air India adds a new U.S. route; and a new company plans luxury small-jet service between New York and London.

Last fall, American won rights to fly from LAX to Beijing, with a start date expected in the first quarter of this year. But now American’s plans are up in the air, with the airline complaining to the Transportation Department that Chinese officials won’t provide takeoff and landing slots at Beijing’s Capital International Airport. It’s not that Chinese authorities tried to stick American with slots in the middle of the night, the carrier said — they wouldn’t give it any slots at all for the LAX flights. American argues that this is in violation of the bilateral agreement between the two countries. Currently, the only airline flying the LAX-Beijing route is Air China, which has three flights a day. American flies to Beijing from DFW and Chicago.

Given all the tough talk from the new Trump Administration toward China, this situation could pose a tough test for newly appointed Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, the wife of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Speaking of the Trump Administration, Qantas and American Airlines seem to think the new regime in Washington might be inclined to reverse the Obama DOT’s recent rejection of the carriers’ joint venture partnership, so they plan to make a new filing for antitrust immunity. But in the meantime, Qantas said it has stopped code-sharing on AA’s Sydney-Los Angeles flights, and that it is adjusting its frequent flyer policy with American “to bring it in line with other Oneworld carriers” starting May 1.

In other news, American has expanded its code-sharing partnership with Air Tahiti Nui, and has put its AA code onto that carrier’s Los Angeles-Paris CDG flights.

This old Upper Class cabin on Virgin Atlantic’s A330s is being replaced. (Image: Virgin Atlantic)

Virgin Atlantic is refitting the Upper Class cabins of its 10 Airbus A330s following complaints that the seating layout of the herringbone “Dream Suites” was too cramped. Specifics of the redesign haven’t yet been announced, but Routesonline.com reports that the carrier has started to schedule the rollout of the overhauled A330s. The schedule sets March 27 for the debut of the aircraft on Virgin’s Manchester-San Francisco and Manchester-Boston routes, followed by London Heathrow-Newark, LHR-New York JFK, LHR-Washington Dulles, Manchester-Atlanta and Manchester-JFK on September 1; LHR-Atlanta and another LHR-JFK flight October 30; and LHR-Miami October 31.

While United will continue to operate one of its last 747s on the San Francisco-London Heathrow route through the summer, it has filed plans to change the aircraft on its second flight (the evening departure from SFO, UA930/949) from a 777-200ER to a 787-9 from May 24 through September 5, according to Routesonline.com.

Air India plans a July start for its newest U.S. route, linking Delhi and Washington Dulles. The carrier plans to use a 777 to fly the new route three times a week. Air India already flies to New York, Newark, Chicago and San Francisco.

Bliss Jet, a new company that last year said it would begin offering individually-ticketed private jet flights between the New York area and the U.K., failed to deliver on that plan. But now the carrier is trying again – this time with a new route. Bliss Jet’s original plan called for weekly roundtrip service between New York’s Westchester County Airport and London’s small Biggin Hill Airport. Now the company is planning to start offering private jet charter flights sometime this spring between LaGuardia and London Stansted, using private terminals at both airports. Bliss Jet will sell individual seats on Gulfsteam G450s and G550s with a maximum of 10 seats per flight. Service will operate eastbound on Sundays and westbound on Thursdays. The cost will be a mere $11,995 – each way.

If you’ve been hoping to book a final flight on a United 747 before the iconic jumbo jet is retired, you better start exploring your options before The Queen gets the boot.

Last year, United said it had set a target date of October 2018 to eliminate the remaining 747s from its fleet. But now that date has been moved up.

United President Scott Kirby said in a letter to employees this week that the company expects the final 747 flight to take place in the fourth quarter of 2017.

And the reason United is eager to remove the aging planes is largely economic. The 747 “once represented the state-of-the-art in air travel,” Kirby said. “Today, there are more fuel-efficient, cost-effective and reliable widebody aircraft that provide an updated inflight experience for our customers traveling on long-haul flights.”

Like United, Delta is starting to get rid of these graceful, gas guzzling old birds. (Photo: Delta)

United has been flying 747s since 1970. It is replacing its 747s with 777s and 787 Dreamliners on long-haul routes.

The earlier retirement of the planes will put United on a schedule similar to Delta’s, the only other U.S. carrier that still flies 747s. Delta also plans to get rid of its remaining 747s by the end of this year, replacing them with long-haul Airbus models including the A330 and the new A350.

It will be interesting to see whether Delta or United throws a better send off celebration. In today’s announcement, Kirby said, “we’ll honor the 747 with an unforgettable retirement celebration — we’ll keep you posted with more details on her final flight in the months ahead.”

We’ll be watching on that bittersweet day.

A fond farewell to Cathay’s Queen of the Skies at SFO in 2014 (Photo: Chris McGinnis)

Hawaiian Airlines’ A330s equipped with lie-flat seats in a new business class cabin will be flying to their first official mainland destination starting in February. And it’s not on the West Coast.

The airline tells TravelSkills that its first mainland route to see the new seats on sale will be New York JFK-Honolulu. Hawaiian this week starts selling the new “premium” seats on its flights HA50 and HA51 for travel February 18-May 25; sales for later flights are TBD. A quick scan of JFK-HNL fares on HawaiianAir.com shows the lowest price for first class round trips to be about $1,600 on the low end to $4,000 on the high end.

In early October, Hawaiian started selling the seats on routes from Honolulu to Asia/Pacific destinations for travel beginning in December. And as a suprise and delight feature, Hawaiian ran them between LAX and Hawaii a few times this summer.

Lie-flat seats in Hawaiian’s new A330 Premium Cabins are now on sale for New York-Honolulu flights. (Image: Hawaiian Airlines)

The Premium Cabin has 18 lie-flat leather seats that are 20.5 inches wide and 76 inches long, in a 2-2-2 layout. Front-cabin travelers get new amenity kits, cotton quilts and lounging pillows, as well as two USB ports and one A/C outlet. The new in-flight entertainment system – with more than 100 hours of movie and TV programming – is available via 13-inch tablets that sit on a telescoping arm. The Premium Cabin also offers new in-flight dining options with regional dishes from Hawaiian chefs.

Besides the new Premium Cabin, the planes will also get 28 more Extra Comfort seats – the carrier’s premium economy option. The refit will trim total capacity on the widebodies from 294 seats to 278, including 18 in Premium Cabin, 68 in Extra Comfort and 192 in the main cabin (which will still provide 31-inch pitch, the airline notes).

Hawaiian is not part of any of the big three global airline alliances, but it maintains partnership agreements with seven airlines (including JetBlue and Virgin America, but no longer with American), which allow members of frequent flyer programs to earn and burn miles on Hawaiian flights.

It’s increasingly unlikely that we’ll see Hawaiian’s lie-flat seats on the West Coast over the long term because the carrier will soon begin to deploy its newest 190-seat Airbus A321 on these shorter routes where a lie-flat seat is likely superfluous.

Have you flown Hawaiian Airlines before? Would you pay more to lie-flat on your next trip to the islands?

Hawaiian Airlines has revealed details of the planned makeover of its A330 fleet, including a new Premium (business class) Cabin with lie-flat seats and the addition of more “Extra Comfort” (premium economy) seats with more legroom than regular economy.

The new Premium Cabin will still have 18 seats, as Hawaiian’s Business/First cabin has now. But the new seats will recline into beds that lie flat, featuring 20.5-inch width and 76-inch length. They’ll be in a 2-2-2 configuration, offering “intuitive” seat controls as well as two USB ports and one A/C power outlet for each seat.

Intuitive seat controls include a unique wheel that regulates the degree of recline. (Image: Hawaiian)

Those seat controls include a new “reclining wheel” that passengers can use to set the exact amount of recline they like, up to 180 degrees.

In the past, Hawaiian was primarily a West Coast – Hawaii operation. But recently Hawaiian has added new nonstops to New York (10 hours) and is building up at a transpacific powerhouse with flights between its Honolulu hub and biz travel destinations in Australia, China, Japan, Korea and New Zealand. To compete in these long-haul markets, it needs a lie-flat seat up front.

In-flight entertainment can be seen on tablets that rest on an adjustable arm. (Image: Hawaiian)

Meanwhile, the A330’s Extra Comfort (premium economy) section will get an additional 28 seats, for a total of 68. Main cabin seating will be reduced from 236 to 192. Extra Comfort seats provide 36 inches of pitch, and purchasers also get priority boarding, complimentary on-demand entertainment and a power outlet. Hawaiian said seat pitch in the standard economy will still be 31 inches on the reconfigured planes.

The airline said the first newly configured A330 will start flying in West Coast-Hawaii service during June, but it won’t say where. “Sales for the Premium Cabin are expected to commence in the fall, when the first dedicated routes will be revealed along with new signature service elements and a host of new amenities,” the company said. The overhaul of its A330 fleet is expected to be completed by early 2018.

Hawaiian is not part of any of the big three global airline alliances, but it maintains partnership agreements with seven airlines (including JetBlue and Virgin America, but no longer with American), which allow members of frequent flyer programs to earn and burn miles on Hawaiian flights.

It’s increasingly unlikely that we’ll see Hawaiian’s lie-flat seats on the West Coast over the long term because the carrier will soon begin to deploy its newest 190-seat Airbus A321 on these shorter routes where a lie-flat seat is likely superfluous.

Have you flown Hawaiian Air? What did you think? Would you consider it for a transpacific trip? Please leave comments below.

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Editor Chris McGinnis

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